


Rainfall

by angel1876



Series: The Oncoming Frost [2]
Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: Comfort, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Neglect
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-05
Updated: 2019-02-05
Packaged: 2019-10-22 15:48:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17665499
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angel1876/pseuds/angel1876
Summary: The thunder rumbles through the clouds up above.A shadow moves through the nursery.





	Rainfall

A distorted roar filled the air, the sound crashing down with enough force that the ground rumbled with it.

Frostkit curled where she lay, her fur puffed up in the face of the downpour. She'd never heard anything like this before, this monster that raged outside. Worst still, it came when she was alone. Her mother was out hunting, and had been gone since daybreak.

Still, she called out, her mismatched ears pulled back against her skull, her eyes flickering amber with the blinding flash that lit the overcast sky. She called her mother's name. Surely, the other clan cats must have heard her, but if they did, none answered. She didn't want any of them, anyway. 

That silence from her protector scared her even more than the noise. No matter how hard she called, her mother didn't come.

She cried where she lay, a trembling heap on the floor of the nursery, and just when she was starting to give up hope, a paw came to rest at the center of her back.

"It's just a storm, it'll pass. And she'll be back soon."

Frostkit yelped, her paws digging into the ground as she whirled, turning to face the stranger. Her startled gasp flooded her with a smell that she didn't recognize, thick in the air, wild and musty. She didn't like it.

It was a she-cat. Big, with shaggy fur the color of the night. Like the space between the stars had been carved out into the shape of a cat, a pitch black shadow that blended into the darkness behind her. Bright amber eyes broke through the dark, glowing in a way that felt wrong. Unnatural. 

There was only one way into the nursery, and Frostkit hadn't seen her enter.

"Who are you??" she squeaked out. Frostkit drew out her claws, teeth baring in the beginnings of a hiss. It was bad for non-clan members to be in the camp.

But another rumble shook the ground, and the young kit's resolve shattered. With nowhere else to go, she jumped forward, thoughtlessly pushing herself under the other cat's bigger form.

Without hesitation, the shadow cat coiled her tail around her side and tucked a foreleg up over her back, wrapping her up in a nest of long, flowing fur. There was no warmth to be felt, but a chill that matched the weather outside. She murmured, her meow hardly louder than the rain. "It's okay."

"I want mom! You're not mom!"

"I know. But...I'm here. You'll be safe, and she'll come back."

Frostkit whined, again crying out, but there was nothing that the shadow cat could do to calm her. She could only stay and be there with her.

The storm carried on, the wind and rain and thunder going for what felt like forever. The other cat never moved, never tried to pull away. 

It would seem that she intended on staying there until the rain stopped. Frostkit was beyond caring at this point who was with her, so long as she had someone to keep her from being eaten by the monster outside.

So when the shadow cat finally did step back, when the pressure of her fur left, Frostkit clung to her. "Don't leave me!"

A nuzzle to the top of her head in response, a purr that wasn't at all as comforting as it should have been. "Mother's here."

That made her pause. Frostkit turned away, looking toward the entrance of the nursery. By the time she looked back, the shadow cat was gone, and so was the musty smell that followed her.

Before she had the time to panic, she heard her mother's voice. "Sorry about taking so long, the rain scared all the prey away, and-"

"Mom!"

Frostkit was at her side in an instant, burrowing under her for protection. 

Her mother was here, and now she was safe from the storm.


End file.
